Arizona St
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@kuballin10 Shak started
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I am happy that we played well twice in a row.
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@SlimShaddy54 Bidunga is the key.
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@patoh3 wow Shak doesbr get to +26 if he doesnt get minutes. Feels like he got the opportunity to make a big contribution. Cant be upset with that as a player.
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Yeah i mean Moore got 22 minutes and is ramping up. Dont see anything objectionable there.
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After AJ’S brief floor time in the first half which he got the minutes he deserved , not many was just BAD wgeb he was in and not a second the 2nd half- – - -
Could it be possible he leaves the team during the Season ?
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@SlimShaddy54 if we can keep winning and the players that do get run perform, I dont see any reason why he would leave unless he has a bad attitude or getting bad advice. We are already into second semester. He has plenty of time to develop his potential and improve his stock and nobody would blink twice if he left at seasons end, even if sticking around would do him good.
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Zeke Mayo Highlights vs. Arizona State (23 Pts, 5 Rebs)
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@SlimShaddy54 said in Arizona St:
After AJ’S brief floor time in the first half which he got the minutes he deserved , not many was just BAD wgeb he was in and not a second the 2nd half- – - -
Could it be possible he leaves the team during the Season ?
I had the same thought! Wondered if Storr would call it a day in Lawrence and move on. Seems crazy of course, but he’s now deep in the doghouse. I will say this: Bill gave him a chance to play through FOUR turnovers/mistakes until he yanked him on the fifth eff up. Or something like that. That’s more than usual.
Very intriguing to see how this story line plays out.
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Bill said, no energy? Let’s press and the defense we’ve seen for the last several games went boom. Shak Moore I can electric slam and I can thief. Rylan was having FUN! Hunt running out to contest three pointers and I’ll have another double double. Yes Zeke can score. Flory eyes are on everything and oh here’s an athletic slam from a Juan dime. KJ playing as hard as I can remember. We only really played one good half but look out B12 we can ball.
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@rockchalkjayhawk I’d say he’s in his own doghouse. He could really help the team. It’s his decision, which would really help him in the long run. What a waste of talent.
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@Crimsonorblue22 said in Arizona St:
@rockchalkjayhawk I’d say he’s in his own doghouse. He could really help the team. It’s his decision, which would really help him in the long run. What a waste of talent.
100%
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He’s been sore after games still so probably best approach in the short term. His minutes are here to stay and is showing why he’s now a starter
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@Crimsonorblue22 the team would be better off without him imo
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@BShark much rather he stick around and contribute so i can justify picking up some sweet swag from the corner storr.
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@approxinfinity said in Arizona St:
@BShark much rather he stick around and contribute so i can justify picking up some sweet swag from the corner storr.
Ha. It’s just very hard to see at the moment. Right now, he’s the worst player on the team probably. Bill gave him a make a wish start and heavier minutes against WVU and we see how that went. The energy is so much better starting games without him in the line-up. He just can’t process a different role other than “middling volume scorer”. He needs the ball in his hands and lots of shots to put up stats. That’s who he has always been.
All that said he is being paid a lot so maybe both sides figure something out by the end of the season.
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@BShark said in Arizona St:
@approxinfinity said in Arizona St:
@BShark much rather he stick around and contribute so i can justify picking up some sweet swag from the corner storr.
Ha. It’s just very hard to see at the moment. Right now, he’s the worst player on the team probably. Bill gave him a make a wish start and heavier minutes against WVU and we see how that went. The energy is so much better starting games without him in the line-up. He just can’t process a different role other than “middling volume scorer”. He needs the ball in his hands and lots of shots to put up stats. That’s who he has always been.
All that said he is being paid a lot so maybe both sides figure something out by the end of the season.
A shame but you can just see how uncomfortable he is in this system. Not good utilizing the pick and roll. Forces 3s at the wrong time. Gets torched on D constantly. Lazy passes.
He’s a shell of who he could be. It’s just how Bill coaches and sometimes it works great and sometimes it ruins a good player.
Some guys thrive under this scrutiny (Zeke, Coit, and Moore) and some guys need positivity and uplifting. Storr is a guy who thrives from being told how good he is. And Bill Self just isn’t the warm fuzzy father figure pat you on the back buy you ice cream kind of coach.
Thank God Bill went scorched Earth though and brought in Diggy and Shak. Guy said I need at least 10 playable guys because 1-2 of these dudes just suck every year.
I think this team is about to get really damn good. Starting five is figured out. Flory minutes will probably keep growing. Griffen looked pretty good last night. Zeke can be our “need a bucket guy”. Diggy can keep Juan fresh. Last piece of this whole thing is seeing the D crank it up one more notch. You see how well this team runs on a rebound right now. If we start getting a few more stops a game we are going to run teams out of the gym.
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I think we have our rotation figured out. DaJuan, Diggy, Shak, Mayo, Rylan, KJ, Flory, and Hunter. We will roll with those 8 guys most of the season. Maybe even with 7 (Diggy not making the cut) when things get really intense. AJ didn’t make the cut.
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@Kcmatt7 Yeah I think we have figured out the top 8 (and 7). Last night is actually the exact kind of minutes/rotation i want to see. Outside of Flory fouling out (which clearly lowered how much he played) and Shak/Rylan still easing in a bit. Diggy should be in the 10-12 minute range unless he is NBA jam on fire. Fwiw he started the season 15-30 from three but is 2-15 lately. So he might be streaky but at least he isn’t shy to let it rip.
The defense is trending in a good direction lately.
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@Jhawk69 said in Arizona St:
I think we have our rotation figured out. DaJuan, Diggy, Shak, Mayo, Rylan, KJ, Flory, and Hunter. We will roll with those 8 guys most of the season. Maybe even with 7 (Diggy not making the cut) when things get really intense. AJ didn’t make the cut.
Ha. I see we reached the same conclusion.
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@BShark if he’s a cancer on the team, it’s really too bad. Maybe some counseling. Hate giving up on a young man.
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@approxinfinity thing is he has had problems at different schools, had some issues. I think one of the biggest is he doesn’t want to commit to defense and you know how Bill feels about that. Storr has always been a high volume shooter, I think there is some problem there- - -could be a problem with others in the locker room
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My initial enthusiasm about Diggy is waning a bit.
There’s lots to like about his play — mainly that he isn’t shy and he’s in the game for one reason…shoot it.
We sure need that at times. I wish he could reign in his shot selection a tiny bit.
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I checked the score a few times but was too tired to turn it on and get invested. Sounds like the second half went well. I’m very glad we won the KU fight cancer hero for the game was a gal I went to highschool with so that’s nice.
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@Kcmatt7 Besides his shot volume AJ just isn’t buying into that there are two ends to a court. He just doesn’t buy in to the defensive end , gets smoked multiple times , plus he like has been mentioned he has to get his shots , and a lot of times they are at a critical point of the game
Look at Rylan , he was in deep to , BUT I think Rylan is on the right track, and evidentially Coach believes that too , as his floor time is increasing. We need Rylan actually I myself believe more then AJ-- Rylan gives us another legit three point threat , more so then AJ.- - If you notice Rylan is also driving the ball better and has been making the mid range J’s also I think Rylan is figuring it out. Give me Zeke and Rylan from distance we be good.
I think also Coach just maybe has gotten a better feel for his starting five,-- Have Diggy give Juan some back up minutes , bringing in Rylan , -Flory playing more and also backing up Hunter-- - then we have AJ -AJ right now loks to be the number nine option on the roster - -one reason I asked is it possible that AJ says screw this and packs and goes.- -AJ needs the headlines,he has to be " THE GUY " or so he thinks. but until he can prove himself, then it is what it is
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@Kcmatt7 Can we really say Storr was thriving before though? Like he was good scoring at Wisconsin but he needed to bring more to the table than that if he wants to get drafted. Some times you need a kick in the ass to get there.
Just realized does saying that means I may officially be old.
@rockchalkjayhawk yeah rationally I don’t think it is good for the team if Diggy is getting a lot of minutes, but he sure is entertaining to watch
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Human nature I guess to talk about Storrs stinkage but Man o Man, Mr. Mayo, your table is ready. Is he playing his way into 1st team AA? 1st team all conference? 23 or more in 4 of the last 5 games and the game he didn’t score that much he had 8 assists. He has hit so many big shots.
@mr11 2nd team all BIG is some indicator of thriving. They don’t even go to the dance without him. I sometimes wonder does Self call Greg Gard and say ‘Greg buddy, got any tips on AJ? Like what made him look competent there in Madison?’ I mean I jest of course, but I still believe we can see a Remy like revival of AJ in February and March. We all can hope it happens.
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AJ start physical guarding and boarding. You have the gifts and then get in on the fun. Then go to your spot and ring the bell from three because you need it and the team needs it. Just a couple of makes opens up one side of the lane and gets us to a reliable 10 makes from deep to complement our defenses emergence. It’s all about confidence sir. Did the Sun Devils get only 13 in the second half?
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This isnt MJ Rice or Udeh or Pettiford.
Storr has done things in a p4 conference.
It does make me a little anxious looking at his twitter tagline and seeing him saying for business inquiries heres my email… Feels like a kid who thought his trajectory was one thing and has his head in a lot of different places. 7 different schools, swag shop with his own logo. Probably distracted by fun stuff too.
Needs to shut all the noise down and just focus on basketball, if thats possible.
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By chance, is AJ homesick?
We stepped up second half and shut them down. KJ was instrumental in that turnaround. Wish he was an on/off switch and just turned on at the start of every game! ZEKE remains our volume scorer. It’s so nice to have a guy who always looks to score when his fingers touch the ball. Also a great rebounder! He has a future in basketball! May not be NBA but definitely abroad!
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If AJ were prone to homesickness he wouldn’t be on his 7th school in 7 years.
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@Jhawk69 is that true? Maybe he hasnt put his roots down anywhere because he is being advised not to do so?
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@approxinfinity I’m pretty sure. I know he is at his sixth stop in the last 6 years. In high school he played for Bishop Gorman, then AZ Compass, then IMG Academy. In college he spent a year at St John’s, a year at Wisconsin, then a year at Kansas.
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Update we are now 2-0 in 2025 with a 35 point margin of victory.
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@Jhawk69 Ya There is a reason he has been that way---- -something just not right, just has some problems on the floor. Ya sur was leading scorer at what Wisc ?- -Yet look at the shot volume think he just has to be in the lime light, think he has some trouble sharing that - - -doesn’t plat defense a lick and that’s a problem , you don’t play both ends then you get a seat over with Coach
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Anybody worried about that “flat” first half? Seems common now.
Once again we seemed lifeless. Of course I missed the first 5 min of the game. Thx ESPN!
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@rockchalkjayhawk said in Arizona St:
Anybody worried about that “flat” first half? Seems common now.
Once again we seemed lifeless. Of course I missed the first 5 min of the game. Thx ESPN!
We actually started the game quite well. Was 6-0.
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Storr just isn’t a fit here. They shoulda known better but it was a bad eval and here we are.
Sucks for both sides. If Moore and Rylan continue to ascend as we are seeing then we don’t have to worry about it too much.
He will be at his 8th school next yr
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@wissox yeah true me saying he wasn’t thriving probably goes too far. But as good as he was even there, he was mostly just elite at getting to the basket and still had a lot of room for improvement in the rest of his game. Would Greg have been able to get more improvement out of him this year if he had stayed? I definitely can’t imagine his season would have gone worse than how he is playing at KU so far, but agreed the season isn’t done and we could see it all click still. Going to keep rooting for him as long as he wants to be here.
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It’s not easy, but i’m going to have some hope for Storr though. We did see something good out of him in the UCF game. He did well to find some baskets. not all hope lost, but something needs to change. we don’t know these players, but maybe it’s just a mindset.
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@BeddieKU23 said in Arizona St:
Storr just isn’t a fit here. They shoulda known better but it was a bad eval and here we are.
Sucks for both sides. If Moore and Rylan continue to ascend as we are seeing then we don’t have to worry about it too much.
He will be at his 8th school next yr
So, went back and looked at Storr’s stats last year trying to figure what the attraction was. Shiny almost 17ppg, but…43% FG%; 32% from 3 - 4 RPG - 1 APG with almost 2 TOs. Known defensive liability and extremely inefficient scorer who doesn’t contribute elsewhere. And throw in the multiple schools. Why???
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@DCHawker The attraction was that he is a scorer who could create his own shot which was something missing from last season.
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@DCHawker If I recall correctly we were a little underwhelmed by his start to the season. He came on stronger in the 2nd half which is of course what people remember. The BIG tournament was his best part of the season. I really don’t pay attention to how someone plays defense so it’s kind of tough for me to comment on that but I do wonder if people who say he doesn’t play D actually watched him or just formed opinions on what they’ve heard?
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A scorer with what they thought was untapped potential to be more then just that. If they paid anywhere close to what I think they did yikes
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@wissox No he sticks out pretty easily, hard NOT to see actually how of defense he plays, if any at all. Again that’s one of the main reasons we are seeing less of him. That on top of his ridiculous turnover overs , - sloppy passing , poor drives IF he does , bad timed forced ill advised shots at the wrong time in a game , non rebounder , low assist gut , if you can’t play any Defense or really poor defense then your going to have plenty of time to gt it figured out.
It’s not like Coach hasn’t given him opportunity, but when he is on the floor it doesn’t take long before he has done one or multiple things wrong to get pulled. Bill has started him - -brought him off the bench early – brought him off the bench late, an I think the only mind set AJ has is one thing an that is to get the ball and shoot , forced or not-- he does not give playing any kind of defense a second thought - -not a good recipe to play here, just a bad fit
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So were we so desperate we told him he just has to score here? Doesn’t sound like Self….
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@drgnslayr said in Arizona St:
So were we so desperate we told him he just has to score here? Doesn’t sound like Self….
Last season, KU had nobody that could create a shot and get a basket and AJ’s skill set filled that need.
Self was so frustrated that he went out and added 4 transfers who were all known much more for their offensive skills over their defensive abilities. We’ve definitely seen Griffen, Mayo, and Coit struggle on defense at times, but nothing compared to Storr.
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It’s always interesting to see when players are not motivated by Self’s coaching style. I guess it’s not for everyone, there’s a standard to uphold and I don’t think AJ has bought into it. Easy to say from the outside but he doesn’t show that he fits here, which is crazy because his athletic profile and body type is meant to thrive here. With his recent struggles I’m imagining they will try and figure it out in this important 5 game stretch we start today. Team has been healthy so far but we have upcoming games against two of the most physical teams in the nation. Any injury is going to put the focus back on AJ having to be a factor. He needs to figure it out
